


In the Shadows

by xiaolianhua



Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Historical Fantasy, M/M, Mystery
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-07
Updated: 2019-11-07
Packaged: 2021-01-25 00:42:40
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,295
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21347467
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/xiaolianhua/pseuds/xiaolianhua
Summary: Sehun falls in love with the mysterious foreigner from China
Relationships: Huang Zi Tao | Z.Tao/Oh Sehun
Kudos: 8





	In the Shadows

Tao bit down on the rag between his teeth as he heaved a breath and pushed a needle through his own skin. The alcohol and salt he had poured on the bleeding gash hadn’t done much for it but the bleeding was reduced enough for him to sew the large wound closed. Breathing harshly though his nose, the man pushed the needle through the skin again, pulling the string tight before tying the ends together. It wasn’t perfect but it’d heal with time.

The remaining alcohol in the bottle tempted Tao but the man knew better than to touch it. He tore a sleeve off his shirt, cutting it to wrap around the cut tightly before laying down on the dusty floor to rest. That’s where Sehun found him few hours later.

“Tao!” Sehun gasped, looking behind before bolting the door closed inside and rushing to the man. “Are you badly hurt? Shit, I didn’t know,” he said, kneeling on the ground beside the other. “How’s your arm, can you move it? Did you have herbs, I’ll get some.”

“Sehun, stop it,” Tao groaned, keeping his eyes closed but acknowledging the other man.

Sehun sighed and got up, looking at the other with a heavy heart. “I’ll be back soon with something to eat. And you better be here or I’ll let them kill you for real,” he said, without real menace in the words. Sehun’s eyes caught a sight of black and red hanbok, hastily tossed behind a locker as he left the cottage.

Tao rolled his eyes, pushing himself off the floor when the door shut. This time it had been too close a call. The Oh family was rich and part of the higher status in the village while Tao was a mere outsider from nearby country.

Tao had run over the borders after he was accused of the murder of the 5th prince of China. He had worked for the 9th prince who had planned it all and helped the man to escape to the Korean peninsula. He wouldn’t be able to return to China anymore but he also had no other way of living in Korea than stealing his food and living off the riches. The only skill he had was killing.

Sehun had caught him once when he was stealing some food from the Oh family house. Instead of yelling the guards and getting them to catch Tao, the young master had pulled him aside and helped him to escape. What he didn’t know was that Tao’s most enjoyable act was dashing through the market street and pulling the strings off men’s clothes, letting the loose pants to drop to the ground.

Sehun knew of it, of course he would. The noble had been warned about the pervert dashing through the streets but they were safe. Tao would never be able to expose them due the long garments they wore with several layers. But Oh Sehun was not your usual noble in the Korean peninsula. Although filial to his family, he was also the youngest of the three sons. His parents paid little attention to him if not for the scolding for all mishaps he did. If anything, meeting with the pervert from abroad got Sehun excited about his life.

Sehun took it as his mission to follow the pervert, trying to find out who it was. Once after a spectacular sight of the merchant’s son’s bare bottom, he had caught the pervert and trapped him in a corner between houses. Sehun pushed his body to the other, hand rising up to drag the mask off the other’s face.

“I’m not going to give you up,” he had said, looking at the man’s frantic eyes, seemingly familiar but unable to make the connection. “I enjoy the view as much as you do.” He smirked, feeling the pervert’s hand going slack against his shoulder.

Tao, by now recognizing the young noble relaxed, letting himself be discovered. He took a breath as Sehun’s slim fingers clasped on the black scarf, tugging it down. Tao didn’t give time for Sehun say anything as he tugged the other into a needy kiss. Sehun struggled to get away, hitting the man as he moved back.

Tao winked at him, slowly dragging tongue over his wet lips before dashing away at the moment guards showed up at the end of the alleyway. “Hey you! Did you see a man in dark mask? He was seen running this way.”

Sehun turned to the men, gaining his senses, “Eh.. ah? N-no.. I didn’t see anyone.” The men nodded but didn’t look convinced, one of them stepping forward. “What are you doing here, nobles shouldn’t be wandering at the back of the commoner’s living quarters. What are you hiding, who are you?”

Sehun rolled his eyes, handing him the plate of his information. “I saw a cat coming this way. I wanted to catch it. I won’t be a bother,” the noble said with well practiced manner, snatching his nameplate back as he walked briskly away from the area to the busy market street.

Sehun and Tao’s relationship got interesting after the incident. Either kept luring the other into dark corners, stealing a kiss or two in haste before splitting apart again. Sehun didn’t know where Tao stayed but at the moment as the Chinese was pushing against his body, knee jostled between his thighs to press against the hardening length through the layers of his hanbok, it didn’t matter the least. The adrenaline and spark of being discovered pushed Sehun forward, needing and wanting more of the dark mysterious man.

Sehun found out where Tao stayed few weeks later. He had caught him stealing food from the market and followed the man down the roads and through forest to a small cabin near the river. Tao had been more than surprised, jumpy even when Sehun knocked on the door and pushed it open. The noble had frozen in the doorway, Tao ready in a battle stance with a small sword in one hand.

“It’s just me, can I come in?” Sehun asked, face blank although eyes showed uneasiness as they flickered between the sharp knife and Tao’s eyes.

“Did anyone follow you?” Tao asked, keeping eyes on the other as he turned around to look.

“No, I don’t think so.”

“You think, you don’t know?”

“I know no one followed.” Sehun said, getting bored with the whole thing. “If you don’t want me here, I’ll just go. Whatever,” he huffed, eyeing the other as he made a move to leave.

“Stay,” Tao said, moving to put the sword away, “Come inside and lock the door.”

Sehun quickly forced off the smile threatening to come to his lips. “Alright,” he breathed as he stepped in and bolted the door closed for the first time of many to come.

Tao moved quickly, trapping Sehun against the door with a fervent kiss, hands getting lost in the garbs. Tao pulled the string keeping Sehun’s hat on before dropping it to the ground, hands going up to untie the top bun on the other’s head. 

Sehun gasped for breath, pulling Tao into another open mouthed, searing kiss with fingers deep in the other’s long, unruly hair. “I want you,” Sehun said, shaking his hair free when Tao got the hair tie off, chest heaving as he stared the other to look over at himself.

Their first time was all but perfect; sand and hay stuck on wet skin, bodies clashing without a rhythm as they worked toward a climax.

Tao was jolted away from his thoughts when the door was opened again and Sehun came back with a basket. He followed the noble with his eyes, trying not to cringe in pain when he moved the wounded arm. “I said I’m fine,” he insisted in cold tone.

“Whatever, Tao,” Sehun said, bolting the door and sitting down in front of the man, reaching to take off the shirt Tao had on. He pushed Tao’s hand away when the other tried to stop him, “It’ll make it heal faster. It’s from my own stash, the family doctor doesn’t know.”

“Why do you do this, Sehun?” Tao asked, wincing when Sehun took his arm and carefully unwrapped the bindings.

“You know why, now shut up and let me treat you. You can repay me when you’re well enough to fuck me through the ground.”

Tao laughed, voice low as he talked, “I’m totally capable of doing that even with a wounded arm. It’s not my dick that your guards tried to cut off.”

Sehun pressed harder on the stitched wound. “Oops,” he said, giving Tao a sweet smile before wrapping the bind back around his bicep.

“You’re an idiot for hanging out with outlaw like me. I killed a prince, Sehun,” Tao said, looking at Sehun shrugging as the man got some bread from the basket and forced Tao to eat it. “So? You won’t kill me and while I can’t run away yet, I could do it soon. They’re thinking of sending me to the capital for studies anyways. “

Tao shrugged, chewing the bread quietly as Sehun moved around, cleaning the needle and bloody rags that still were lying around the room. “I can’t believe you sewed the wound yourself. But you know…” He said, sauntering close and trapping Tao down by sitting on his lap. “That turns me on so bad.”

Tao smirked, moving his hand to Sehun’s waist, slipping lower to stay on his behind. “Yeah?”

“Mhmm..” Sehun said, nuzzling Tao’s neck before biting down on it, humming at the taste of sweat and adrenaline. “So manly, so sexy,” he said, licking over the bronze skin. Kissing his way up to Tao’s lips, Sehun bit on the flesh before sucking on it. 

Tao grunted, pulling the noble closer as he pressed their mouths together in deep kiss. Mindful of the wounded arm, Tao pulled the belt off from Sehun’s slim waist and slid his hands under the shirt. Tao sucked on Sehun’s tongue, playing with it as he urged the man to strip, unable to do it himself with his arm.

Sehun moved back to look at his lover, hand gently touching the bandage on his arm. “It’s fine,” Tao said before Sehun could ask. “Hurts but you do the work,” he grinned, taking the chance to tug off Sehun’s shirt. “I need to live low for a while. Make it worth until the next time we can meet.”

Sehun made a strangled noise, helping Tao to take off the shirt, before splaying his hands on Tao’s toned chest, marked with old scars and cuts. “Just a couple months,” Sehun said, looking at the other’s eyes before back to his chest where his own pale skin contrasted with the bronze of Tao’s. He bent down from the waist, trailing lips over the scars, biting and nibbling on the skin. He licked over the space, tongue contouring the muscles as he moved up higher, suckling on the pert nipple before biting on it; the gasp that Tao let out making him smile as he moved to the other, teasing and playing with it before rewarding his lover with another bite.

Tao’s fingers curled tighter on Sehun’s waist as his lover pleasured him. He tugged the noble upwards, giving him a needy kiss, his lips following when the other pulled back and slid down on his legs.

Sehun smirked up at him as he cupped Tao’s length through the black pants he was wearing. He palmed it for a while before moving to pull the garment off completely. Kneeling between his lover’s legs, Sehun wrapped his hand around the length, stroking a few times before engulfing the head with his lips.

Tao’s hips bucked up instantly, wanting more of the wet heat but Sehun held him down. He made a sound as he descended, popping leisurely up and down as he flattened his tongue against the thick vein on Tao’s member.

Tao bit down on his lip as he moved the wounded arm, wanting to grasp the other’s long hair. He cursed under his breath as Sehun sucked on the tip, the noble’s tongue teasing him around the head before trailing down along the vein. Letting himself fall back on the ground, Tao pushed up his hips again, this time Sehun allowed him to fuck his mouth. Cursing in pleasure, the Chinese man roughly tugged Sehun off his member and into a hard, sloppy kiss. “I need you, now.”

Sehun moaned, bracing himself on Tao’s shoulders when the other yanked him up. Moving from the kiss, Sehun stood up and undressed himself before getting the oil from a satchel tossed to a corner. “Move to the duvet, Tao. You’re already wounded enough without me fucking you through the dirty ground,” Sehun said, sitting back on the mattress he had just rolled out.

He locked eyes with the Chinese man as he took the oil and lathered some on his fingers. He kept the eye contact as he slid two in a hurry. A small wince passing over Sehun’s face didn’t go unnoticed by Tao but the Chinese man didn’t say anything about it, just quietly moved to the mattress and splayed his hands on Sehun’s slim legs.

Tao’s hands felt hot on Sehun’s thighs, the calloused hands gently prying his legs further apart, exposing the greedy hole sucking in the slim digits to the dark eyes. Sehun shuddered at the attention, his fingers twisting and turning inside him as he stretched himself ready for the other. The fingers were not enough, they never would be and Tao seemed to think the same as he reached for the oil and slicked a digit to push in his lover with the others.

Sehun stroked his cock with his free hand, the red length almost purpling at the tip from the excitement and need for the other. The length jerked in his hand when their fingers brushed past his spot. “Tao.. please,” he gasped, back arching up from the mattress when Tao pushed his fingers deep inside again.

“Ride me, Sehun,” Tao said, biting on the inside of Sehun’s thigh, marking him as his. With last push of fingers, Tao pulled his hand away, moving around the mattress to lay down on it as Sehun moved to knees above him. Tao kept the injured arm low, the other stroking his own length to coat it with oil. Sehun wrapped his own hand around the other’s, stroking together as he leaned over to kiss him. The kiss was slower than the previous ones but no less heated.

Sehun aligned the length and slowly sat down, pausing when the tip pushed in. Taking a breath, he let himself slide down to the hilt, rocking his hips slowly. Tao watched him, breath heaving as his length was engulfed in the hot, searing tightness. Jerking his lover off, the Chinese man thrust up, just a small motion but it was enough to send Sehun toppling off balance and over his chest. “I never want to get used to the way you stretch me open so good,” the noble breathed, biting Tao’s nipples and making the other cry out in pleasured pain.

“Fuck Sehun,” Tao moaned, biting down on his lip as he moved up, hips starting a pattern to match Sehun’s as the noble rode him. The Chinese man watched his lover on top of him, the milky white skin peppered with red spots; love bites and scratches. He enjoyed the way the pink heat seemed to drip down from Sehun’s face to his chest, making his body glow in colors as they rode towards pleasure.

Tao dropped his hand to Sehun’s cock, squeezing at the bottom before stroking him. Sehun shuddered at the touch, breath catching in this throat as Tao pressed his thumb to the tip, sliding it around the ridge and below before bringing the moist digit to his lips, sucking off the pre-cum glistening on the tip.

Tao released into his lover soon after, stamina low from the exertion from earlier. Sehun rode his orgasm before sitting down, keeping the pulsing length inside as he jerked himself to oblivion.

Only minutes after, Sehun moved off his lover and lay next to him on the mattress. Watching the other, he trailed patterns on Tao’s chest before reaching over to snuggle closer. Tao grunted at the closeness but didn’t make a move to leave, only curled his arm around Sehun’s thin body to keep him close. “You’re clingy today,” he mused quietly, nearly asleep.

“I was worried they got you this time.” Sehun admitted, touching the bandage on Tao’s arm. “This needs to stop, I’m not giving up on you.”

“Oh Sehun, you’re a noble. You can’t see me, I’m an outlaw, a murderer and a man,” Tao said, opening one eye to look at his lover whose dark long hair was now in a disarray around his face.

“I know that but I don’t care. They have my brothers to continue the family line. If I have to, I’ll abandon them for you and we’ll live in the woods.”

The words made Tao snort so much that he coughed few times to cover it up. “I don’t want you to do that. Don’t end up like me. It’s better in the capital, we’ll stay there. Somehow I’ll make it work.”

Sehun hummed, propping himself up on his arm to look at Tao. “You know, I can’t believe you could have killed someone. How is a murderer so gentle and sweet? Have you been lying to me all the time? There’s no way y-“ The rest of the words were cut off by Tao’s lips, giving him a sweet, lingering kiss. “I want to forget that and just sleep for now. The herbs are tingling and my muscles are weak. You should go back, it’s getting dark.”

Sehun sighed, kissing him softly. “I’ll be back in the morning. Try to eat some later and I’ll change the herbs tomorrow when I come.” He looked at the man for a moment before forcing himself to get up and dress.

Tao stood up with him and pulled on loose clothes, watching his lover to tie his hair back up in a bun before sliding the hat on. “The Hanbok looks amazing on you, the silk matches your skin,” he commented off-handedly, smiling as Sehun turned around to roll his eyes at him. “Go, I’ll bolt the door and sleep,” Tao said, sending Sehun off with one last kiss.

//

With the help of the moonlight, Tao moved along the river and to the main road. Walking past the Oh residence, he jumped in and took out a knife. With a quick look around, Tao moved silently to the master bedroom and stabbed the sleeping man dead. Not a sound was heard as he cleaned the knife and moved out of the room. On the way back, he dropped the red hanbok belt stained with blood near Sehun’s window before stealing a horse and riding away to the night.

Tao pressed against the wound on his arm as he rode down the road towards the brightly shining Northern Star. He knew that Sehun would be able to connect the dots with stained red belt with him. While Tao would be safe in the capital, the King providing him the safety and treatments needed for his loyalty, he wasn’t sure of himself anymore.

If he were to meet Sehun in the capital after few months of running away, would he be forgiven in the name of justice and love or would he face his own death by the hands of Oh Sehun? 


End file.
